Conversations with Dead People
by MickySue
Summary: Tag to Berlin. Tony and Ziva are both in comas following the crash. They each get to make their own decision whether they want to wake up or cross over to the dead. What will they decide? Will only one of them wake up?
1. Prologue

Author's Note: Just so everyone knows, the prologue and epilogue are super short, but don't let that stop you from continuing. The middle of the story has a good amount to it.

I also do not own NCIS or it's characters. I'd have too much fun with them, and that amount of fun must be illegal.

Enjoy and please review :)

**Prologue**

"Both Agent DiNozzo and Agent David are in stable condition. Neither are awake yet, and as they both have major concussions, it could be a while before either wake up."

"How long is a while?" Gibbs asks the doctor.

"Well, that is simply up to them. There's no science to tell us when they'll wake. It could be an hour… it could be days. It could even take weeks. We just don't know."

Gibbs nods his head as the doc leaves the room. "Both of you better wake your asses up soon." He walks over to the bed by the window where Tony is asleep. "This mission isn't over yet," he says as he lightly head slaps his senior agent. He walks back over to the bed closest to the door, and leans in towards his "newest" agent. He kisses her on the forehead. "We need you in this fight, Ziver."

He takes one last look at his agents, wishing he could stay by their sides, but knows he has work to do.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Tony hears the beeping of a machine, and can tell by the smell that he is in the hospital. He opens his eyes and looks around at his surroundings. He sees himself lying on the bed. "Am I dead?" he voices his thought out loud.

"Not quite Agent DiNozzo." He turns his head at the sound of her voice. "Director Shepard?" he asks, completely confused now. "But how?"

"You're in a sort of limbo at the moment. We call this place the in-between. You're physical body is still alive and you're still in this world, but you can't touch anything and no one can hear you. It's a place where people can cross over from plane to plane."

"I'm… I'm so sorry Jenny. Ziva wanted to follow you that day, and it was my fault that we didn't stick closer to you. If I had, you'd still be alive."

Jenny shakes her head. "Don't be sorry DiNozzo. If you had been there, you might be dead too and it wasn't your time. I was dying anyway. I'm kind of thankful that I went out faster rather than it dragging on."

Tony nods, deciding the past is the past and that he needs to figure out what's going on now? "What about Ziva? Is she alive?" he asks, his voice sounding more panicky as he asks the second question. Jenny moves away from the bed she's blocking and Tony sees her laying there. "Zi?" he rushes to her side, trying to place a hand on her face, but not feeling anything. "Is she going to be okay?" he asks, trying to swallow his guilt.

"I do not know that. She is here somewhere in the in-between also, probably getting a visit from someone else. In the end, you both get to decide your fate, and whether you want to cross over or if you want to go back." Jenny tries to explain.

"Well, I want to go where she's going."

"I'm sorry. I have no knowledge of what she'll choose. Neither will you. Now listen up Tony. Let's get down to business."

"Dead, and you're still all business," he tries to smile.

"I've been watching events unfold here on Earth, and I definitely don't approve of the way all of you have been handling things. Vengeance, seriously? That's all that seems to be on any of your minds, and it's causing every single one of you to lose sight of what's important. Bodnar has to be stopped, but at what cost?"

"He killed Ziva's dad! He killed Vance's wife! He deserves to die." Tony argued.

"That he does, but there are other ways of dealing with it. Let the CIA handle it."

"I would, but Ziva is so hell bent on revenge, and God knows I'm not about to stand by and let her go alone. I recently told her that she's not alone, and I meant it. I won't let her prove me wrong."

"Then if she wakes up, convince her not to do this. Think about it. Someone might lose their job, or something worse. You both just almost lost your lives. You need to decide if it's worth it." Jenny says.

"Do you think you're going to wake up?" she asks.

"I have to, don't I? Everything I know is back there. Ziva is back there, or at least I'm going to assume she is. She's not one to leave unfinished business. Besides, what do I have waiting for me on the other side?"

Jenny shrugs. "You've known plenty of people who've crossed over. You'd find happiness. But I think you're right. You have people who need you." She looks behind her all of a sudden. "Sounds like I've got to go, but there's someone else who wants to talk to you. Take care of yourself, Agent DiNozzo," and with that, she was gone.

"This reminds me of that movie where a girl was really in a coma, but she fell in love with a guy who thought she was a ghost. Have you seen that one?" a voice came from the doorway. "Of course you have. You've seen every movie, haven't you? I know I used to criticize you for that, but you would not believe the movies you can watch here in Heaven. And you've got all the time in the world to do it." The girl walks up to Tony.

"Kate?" he says, surprised. He reaches out to her and is pleasantly surprised when he realizes that he can touch her. He pulls her into a hug. "Oh Kate." He says, tears springing at his eyes. He missed her so much. "Kate, I'm…"

"If you say you're sorry DiNozzo, I'm going to kick your ass right back into your comatose body." She smiles, looking up at him. "It was my time. I didn't know it then, but I know it now. It was the natural order of things."

"Kate, you were so young, how was it your time."

"It just was. But I can guarantee that it's not your time." She turns to face Ziva's bed. "She needs you, Tony."

"Not as badly as I need her."

"You know, I watched it all unfold. I saw her struggle over killing her brother, and I saw how quickly she took my place."

"No one could replace you Kate."

"Well, of course not. I'm not saying that. What I am saying is that Ziva belongs with you and Gibbs, and even McGee. It is her rightful spot. I guess you could say I've grown to watching over her like a sister in a way. At first, it was just because I didn't want to be replaced, but after time went on, I realized how well she fit."

Tony nods. "I couldn't live without her."

"You've proved that before. Please don't prove it again."

"I think, no, I know that I love her," he says, smiling as he says it for the first time. "I need her to know that. Kate, is she going to wake up?"

Kate shrugs. "I'm sorry Tony. I don't know. I do know that either way, she would want you to live. So, go live for her, but if she wakes up, tell her. Tell her everything because you never know when life is going to rip you apart."

It's funny, but the thought of telling Ziva all of this, even though they are on the brink of death, scares him beyond anything else, but he finds himself promising Kate that he will.

"I've got to go back now, Tony, but you go forward. Take care of the team for me, please."

"Always."

"And Tony, I'm touched that you named a pet after me…" she smirks, "even if it is just a goldfish." And with that, she was gone.

Tony stared at the bed across from his. "Ziva, please don't let me be the only one waking up."


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

_Meanwhile…_

Ziva opened her eyes, and almost fainted when she realized that she was staring at her own body. She saw Tony lying on the bed next to hers. "Tony," she called out.

"He can't hear you," came a voice that Ziva had almost forgotten the sound of.

"Tali?" she whispers, as she turns around. In front of her now stood not only her sister, but also her brother.

She walks over to them both and wraps them in a hug. For a moment, she feels at peace.

"Am I dead?" she finally asks, as the hug ends.

Tali shakes her head. "Not yet, no. You're in a coma. You get to choose which way you want to go."

"Is Tony awake?" she asks. Tali explains to her that he is also in the process of making the same decision. "Well, I'll choose whatever one he's choosing," she says, matter-of-factly.

"It doesn't work like that, Ziva," Ari says. "You need to choose for yourself."

Ziva sits down on the edge of her bed, feeling weird that she was practically sitting on herself. "Ari, I am sorry for what I did. I never wanted to lose you too."

"I know Ziva. It was justified. I had lost my way. At first, I didn't understand things, but I do now. It worked out for the best. Tali was lonely anyway," he says, smiling fondly at his youngest sister.

Ziva stands up, walking towards Tali now. "I think about you every day," she says, as she gently touches Tali's face. "Every day."

"Come be with us, Ziva." Ari says. "Your mom's here. Father's here. My mother's here too. Everything is forgiven on this side. We can all be a family again."

Tali reaches for Ziva's hand. "Ziva, I've missed you for so long. Why stay on Earth when we're all here?"

Ziva let a tear fall on her face.

"She must stay because it is the right thing to do." Says a deeper voice, from the doorway, as Eli David walks on in.

"Abba," Ziva half whispers, half cries. She walks to him quickly. He wraps her in his arms. "My Ziva," he says. "You have a right to still be mad at me, but I need you to know that I'm so proud of everything you've done. And even though I did not want to believe it, you have another family who needs you now on Earth."

Ziva hugs her father tighter. "I do not want to leave. Not now. My family is right here."

"Ah, Ziva, look at you father." He says, as he puts a finger under her chin and raises her face to look up at him. "We will forever be by your side, and we will always be waiting for you. I am still not a huge fan of that DiNozzo, but he has taken good care of you. So has the rest of your NCIS people. Your time is not up. You belong with them."

Ziva, who for once does not care that tears are rolling down her face nods her head slowly. "And Bodnar still has to be stopped."

"No!" Eli says firmly. "It is not your job, Ziva. I know you seek revenge on him, and for good reason. However, it will not end well. I do not need vengeance on my behalf. You have always been one for listening to your own decisions, but will you please just follow this one last order from your father?"

Ziva nods slowly. "Okay Abba, I will do this for you."

"And my dear Ziva, life is such a precious thing. Don't take the ones you love for granted. Tell them how you feel. I can tell that you care deeply about your partner, and although I wish you would have fallen for someone of similar religious values, I know he cares about you deeply too. Don't let that slip away."

He kisses her on the forehead. "It is time for us to go now. Take care, my sweet daughter."

Her family disappeared from her sight way too fast. She so badly wanted to be near them, but as she looked over at Tony's sleeping body, she realized that she needed him right now, and that he would definitely not have left her alone. As she heads back over to her own body, she realizes that the tears she's been crying are running from her sleeping eyes also. She closes her eyes, and lets herself fade back into her body.

* * *

Both Ziva and Tony sit up at the same time with a great gasp of air. Tony was still reeling from his conversations, and Ziva was trying to wipe up her tears.

"Ziva?" Tony whispers.

"I am here Tony." She says. "I came back for you."

Tony lets a smile form on his lips. "I came back for you too."

On second thought, he decides to continue.

"I came back because I am in love with you, and I need you to know that."

Ziva whipped her head back so she was facing him. She hadn't expected those words to come flying out of his mouth.

"You look surprised," he says, a bit scared that she did not feel the same way.

"I am only surprised that you said it. I am not surprised at the fact. I guess it is only fair that you should know that I feel the same way about you." She tells him.

Tony rips his IV off of him and gets out of the bed, making his way to hers. He grabs her hand in his. "Then say it."

Ziva looks up at him, afraid to cross this line, even though she so desperately wants to, but when he squeezes her hand, her resistance melts.

"I love you Tony." She whispers.


	4. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

In the following days, both Tony and Ziva decided that it just was not worth the risk to go after Bodnar. Director Vance was not happy about their sudden decision of wanting out of the case, as he still wanted his revenge. Ziva sat down with him and convinced him that he needed to stay safe for his children. He knew she was right, and without having agents to back him up in this fight, he let the CIA handle it. It hadn't taken long for them to find Ilan Bodnar after Ziva shared all of her info that she had with them, and he was captured within the week.

Meanwhile, Tony and Ziva settled back into their roles of NCIS agents, pretending for their boss's sake, that rule 12 was still intact.

Gibbs just sat at his desk, smirking at the two of them. He didn't care about rule 12. He just cared that his "kids" were okay.

The End.

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_Please review!_


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